Take-Two Interactive’s Mafia for PS2 was again the #1-rented videogame in the U.S., Rentrak’s preliminary Home Video Essentials data for the week ended March 28 showed Thurs. Rentrak said the game, in its 9th week available, earned an additional $294,129, for $2.63 million to date. But Electronic Arts (EA) again dominated the chart among publishers, with 4 titles in the top 10, led by Bond 007: Everything or Nothing for PS2 at #3 in its 6th week (down one notch from a week ago). It earned $266,546 in the week, $1.77 million to date. EA’s other 3 top 10 games were Need for Speed: Underground for PS2 at #4 again in its 19th week ($218,832 in the week, $6.53 million to date), NFL Street for PS2 at #5 again (11th week, $192,890, $2.24 million to date), the Xbox version of the Bond game at #10 (down 3 in its 6th week, $121,911, $872,937 to date). Activision and Ubisoft each had 2 top 10 titles. Activision’s were once again True Crime: Streets of L.A. for PS2 at #7 in its 21st week (down one, $166,335, $5.70 million to date) and Tony Hawk’s Underground for PS2 at #9 in its 22nd week (down one, $129,657, $5.62 million to date). Ubisoft’s were Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon: Jungle Storm for PS2 at #6 in its 2nd week (up 42, $174,509, $233,920 to date) and Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow for Xbox at #8 in its first full week ($140,670). Rounding out the top 10 was Tecmo’s Ninja Gaiden for Xbox at #2 in its 4th week (up one, $278,059, $1.11 million to date).
In its first full week available, the #1-rented DVD in the U.S. was Warner’s Gothika, Rentrak’s preliminary Home Video Essentials data for the week ended March 28 showed. Rentrak said the title made $6.99 million on DVD in the week, for $7.06 million to date. The title was also #1 in combined DVD and VHS sales, earning $9.53 million in the week, $9.62 million to date. Two others -- both from Universal -- made the top 10 their first week: The Rundown at #2 and Honey at #3. Rentrak said The Rundown earned $6.70 million on DVD for $6.80 million to date and, on DVD and VHS, $8.56 million in the week, $8.69 million to date. Honey earned $3.36 million in the week on DVD, $3.72 million to date and, on DVD and VHS, $4.89 million in the week and $4.95 million to date.
The 9th U.S. Court of Appeals, San Francisco, affirmed a decision forcing Televisa into arbitration with DirecTV Latin America (DTVLA). At issue is a set of 3 contracts between DTVLA and Televisa that allowed Televisa to telecast some 2002 World Cup soccer matches. The court said the agreement directed Televisa to black out games DTVLA was broadcasting. DTVLA accused Televisa of failing to comply with the blackout provision and asked the U.S. Dist. Court, L.A., to compel arbitration. Televisa protested, the court said, arguing one agreement -- the letter of intent -- contained the blackout provision and a 2nd -- the sublicense agreement) -- introduced the arbitration clause, so DTVLA couldn’t use the 2nd agreement to cover the first. The district court granted DTVLA’s motion and denied a motion by Televisa for a preliminary injunction staying arbitration. The appeals court said because the sublicense agreement was more formal and more comprehensive, covering “numerous subjects other than the blackout requirement… [t]he sublicense agreement expressly incorporates the letter agreement and Televisa’s blackout obligations.” On Televisa’s appeal of the denial of its preliminary injunction request, the court affirmed the lower court’s decision: “Televisa cannot establish a likelihood of success on or any serious questions going to the merits of its claim.”
DVD-backup software developer 321 Studios filed appeals in 2 federal courts Thurs. against preliminary rulings that banned sale of its products. The company contends the orders violated its free speech rights and customers’ fair use prerogatives. 321 also claims a provision of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) used to block the sale of its software -- the clause that prohibits circumvention of copy protection mechanisms -- is unconstitutional. The maker of the DVD X Copy family of DVD cloning applications requested emergency stays of the rulings.
The International Trade Administration (ITA) has issued the final results of its changed circumstances reviews of the countervailing (CV) duty orders on certain corrosion-resistant carbon steel flat products and cut-to-length carbon steel plate products from Germany. As a result, the ITA is revoking these CV duty orders for entries of subject merchandise with a time of entry on or after April 1, 2004.
The Bureau of Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has issued a notice announcing the 2004 in-quota ("low duty") tariff-rate quota (TRQ) quantity for tuna and skipjack (tuna) in airtight containers, not in oil, weighing with their contents not over 7 kilograms (kg) each, that is not the product of any U.S. insular possession, as described in HTS 1604.14.22 (6% duty).
The International Trade Administration (ITA) frequently issues notices on antidumping (AD) and countervailing (CV) duty orders which Broker Power considers to be "minor" in importance as they concern actions that occur after an order is issued and neither announce nor cause any changes to an order's duty rates, scope, affected firms, or effective period.
The International Trade Administration (ITA) has initiated antidumping (AD) duty investigations of certain circular welded carbon quality line pipe from China, Mexico, and South Korea.
The International Trade Administration (ITA) has issued its final results of the changed circumstances antidumping (AD) duty review of pressure sensitive plastic tape from Italy, concluding that Tyco Adhesives Italia S.p.A. (Tyco) is the successor-in-interest to Manuli Tapes S.p.A. (Manuli)
CompTel/Ascent Alliance supported a proposal by the Australian telecom regulator to require mobile operators to gradually reduce the costs of terminating calls by half by 2007. But it said it remained concerned that “gradual decrease may inhibit competition.” The Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC) issued a preliminary decision Fri., saying it planned to continue to regulate the mobile termination services. The decision came as part of a wide-ranging ACCC review of the regulation of Australian mobile telephone services launched by the regulator last March. ACCC Comr. Ed Willett said in a statement that current termination charges in Australia were “at least twice the cost of delivering the service.” The Commission said the current approach, which was introduced in July 2001 and used retail benchmarking principles to guide the industry in the wholesale pricing of that service, had “not been as effective as it was hoped” and retail prices in mobile services had “not decreased as much as was expected.” The Commission recommended the adoption of a more direct pricing principle that would require mobile operators to gradually reduce the price of the mobile termination service to 9 cents per min. by Jan. 2007. It said the new price was based on the accounting information provided by Australian mobile operators and benchmarking against cost estimates worldwide. The draft pricing principle would require the price to fall to 16 cents per min. by July 1, 2004, with 3 further reductions of 2 cents per min. on Jan. 1 in each of the 3 following years. Willett said the new approach would ensure “a closer correlation between the price and the cost of delivering the mobile termination service.” The ACCC asked for comment on the draft by April 30, saying it expected to issue its final decision in June. CompTel/Ascent Chief Legal Officer Ann Bischoff applauded the proposal, saying that was “a significant step that will eventually help cut in half some of the highest mobile termination rates in the world.” But, she said she was “concerned” that the gradual implementation of the rate reductions was “too slow” and would “cost consumers billions of dollars in unnecessary fees. We believe that an immediate move toward cost-based rates would result in a more robust, competitive marketplace in Australia that would translate into lower bills for consumers.”